Automatic flush actuation apparatus

ABSTRACT

An automatic flush actuation apparatus, which is incorporated with a flushing system having a water inlet, a water outlet, and a water chamber communicating therebetween, that includes a valve member being moved by a flush lever for releasing the water pressure within the water chamber to allow the water passing from the water inlet to the water outlet, and a sensor-operated powering assembly including a relief valve provided at the valve member for controlling the water flowing to the water outlet and an actuator arranged in such a manner that while sensing a presence of a user of the flushing system, the actuator is driven to move the relief valve to an opened position for releasing the water pressure within the water chamber to allow the water passing to said water outlet.

CROSS REFERENCE OF RELATED APPLICATION

This is a Continuation application that claims the benefit of priorityunder 35 U.S.C. §119 to a non-provisional application having anapplication Ser. No. 12/454,775 and a filing date of May 21, 2009, nowU.S. Pat. No. 7,862,001 which is a Continuation application that claimsthe benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 to a non-provisionalapplication having an application Ser. No. 12/215,553 and a filing dateof Jun. 27, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,552,905 which is a Continuationapplication that claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 toa non-provisional application having an application Ser. No. 11/801,928and a filing date of May 11, 2007, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,407,147 which isa divisional application that claims the benefit of priority under 35U.S.C. §119 to a non-provisional application, having an application Ser.No. 11/192,627 and a filing date of Jul. 29, 2005, now U.S. Pat. No.7,232,110 which is a divisional application that claims the benefit ofpriority under 35 U.S.C. §119 to a non-provisional application having anapplication Ser. No. 11/004,704 and a filing date of Dec. 3, 2004, nowU.S. Pat. No. 7,028,977 which is a divisional application that claimsthe benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 to a non-provisionalapplication having an application Ser. No. 10/640,693 and a filing dateAug. 14, 2003, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,845,961 which is aContinuation-In-Part application that claims the benefit of priorityunder 35 U.S.C. §119 to a non-provisional application having anapplication Ser. No. 10/377,124 and a filing date of Feb. 28, 2003 nowU.S. Pat. No. 6,840,496.

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

The present invention relates to an automatic flush actuation apparatuswhich is capable of incorporating with a conventional manual system,such as urinal and water closet, so as to selectively operate theautomatic flush actuation apparatus automatically through the use of asensor or normally through an actuation lever.

2. Description of Related Arts

Manual operated toilet room flush valves for use on urinals and waterclosets in public restrooms are well known. As shown in FIG. 1, aconventional manual operated automatic flush actuation apparatuscomprises a valve body A1 having a water inlet A11 and a water outletA12, a diaphragm A2 having a water channel A21 communicating between thewater inlet A11 and the water outlet A12, a relief valve A3 disposed atthe diaphragm A2 for blocking the water flowing from the water inlet A11to the water outlet A12 through the water channel A21, and a flush leverA4 arranged to move the relief valve A3 at a position that the water isallowed to flow to the water outlet A12 for completing the flushingoperation.

For hygiene purposes, an automatic operated toilet room flush valve isdeveloped. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,169,118 and 5,244,179 disclosea solenoid operated automatic flush valve which is battery-operated andutilizes a latching solenoid to limit power drain on the battery.Accordingly, when the infrared sensor detects the presence of a user ofa urinal or toilet, the flush valve is automatically driven to open tocomplete the flushing operation. However, the flush valves, according tothe above patents, have several common drawbacks.

The presence of the user sensed by the infrared sensor will cause thesolenoid to move the diaphragm to a valve open position. It is knownthat the solenoid is made of a number of circular wire loops to generatea magnetic force when an electric current is passed through the wireloops. The solenoid may come in contact with water such that thesolenoid may accumulate rusting particles from the water, which mayremain on the solenoid. It is one of the common problems to cause afailure of operation of the flush valve. In other words, theconventional manual operated flush valve is more reliable than thesolenoid operated automatic flush valve. Thus, the maintenance cost ofthe solenoid operated automatic flush valve is higher than that of theconventional manual operated flush valve.

In addition, the structural design of the solenoid operated automaticflush valve is different from that of the manual operated flush valve.In other words, when the flushing system is incorporated with thesolenoid operated automatic flush valve, the flushing system will losethe mechanical-manual operated feature. Therefore, there is noalternative to operate the flushing cycle when the solenoid operatedautomatic flush valve has failed to operate.

In order to install the solenoid operated automatic flush valve into theconventional flushing system, the mechanical-manual operating mechanismof the flush valve must be totally removed, which is a waste ofresources in order to incorporated with the solenoid operated automaticflush valve.

The configuration of the solenoid operated automatic flush valve iscomplicated, wherein once the solenoid is broken or the battery is dead,the facility should call a technician to open an outer cover anddisassemble an inner cover for the replacement of the solenoid or thebattery. Due to the complicated structure of the solenoid operatedautomatic flush valve, the solenoid operated automatic flush valverequires a skilled technician to replace the broken solenoid and/or evenreplace the battery, which may further increase the maintenance cost ofthe infrared operated automatic flush valve.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

A main object of the present invention is to provide an automatic flushactuation apparatus which is capable of incorporating with aconventional manual flushing system, such as urinal and water closet, soas to automatically operate the flush valve through the use of a sensor.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic flushactuation apparatus without altering the original structural design ofthe manual operated flush valve in order to incorporate with the presentinvention. Therefore, the user is able to mechanically-manually operatethe flushing cycle for the flushing system if the automatic operationsystem is not functioning properly.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic flushactuation apparatus which is reliable and that can be easily installedand maintained.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic flushactuation apparatus, wherein a covering cap has a battery opening thatallows a power source exposing to outside. Therefore, any individual isable to simply replace the power source without detaching the coveringcap from the flushing system, so as to reduce the maintenance cost ofthe present invention.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic flushactuation apparatus, wherein the covering cap further has a sensoropening that allows a CPU exposing to outside. Therefore, any individualis able to make adjustments via the sensor switch through the CPUopening without detaching the covering cap from the flushing system.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic flushactuation apparatus, which is powered by an electric motor so as toavoid water damage and to enhance performance and reliability.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic flushactuation apparatus, which provides an economic and efficient solutionfor incorporating with the conventional manual operated flushing systemin a simple and economical way.

Accordingly, in order to accomplish the above objects, the presentinvention provides an automatic flush actuation apparatus for a flushingsystem which comprises a valve body having a water inlet, a water outletand a water chamber communicating therebetween, a valve seat, having aflush channel, normally sealed with the water chamber and disposedbetween the water inlet and the water outlet for retaining apredetermined water pressure within the water chamber so as to blockwater flowing from the water inlet to the water outlet, and a flushlever coupled with the valve body, wherein the flush valve comprises:

a valve member adapted for being disposed at the valve seat to controlthe water flowing from the water inlet to the water outlet, wherein thevalve member is capable of being moved by the flush lever between amanual-operated closed position and a manual-operated opened position,wherein at the manual-operated closed position, the valve member isarranged for sealedly sitting at the valve seat to block the water frompassing through the water outlet, and at the manual-operated openedposition, the valve member is moved to an opened position for releasingthe water pressure within the water chamber to allow the water to passfrom the water inlet to the water outlet through the water chamber; and

a sensor-operated powering assembly, comprising:

a housing, which is adapted for mounting on the valve body; areplaceable power source received in the housing; a CPU electricallyconnected with the power source for sensing a presence of a user of theflushing system, so as to active the power generator; a power generatorelectrically connected to the CPU; a relief valve provided at the valvemember for controlling the water flowing from the water inlet to thewater outlet through the water chamber; and an actuator driven by thepower generator to move the relief valve between an auto-operated closedposition and an auto-operated opened position, wherein at theauto-operated closed position, the relief valve is sealedly closed forblocking the water passing to the water outlet, and at the auto-operatedopened position, the relief valve is moved to an opened position by theactuator for releasing the water pressure within the water chamber toallow the water passing to the water outlet.

These and other objectives, features, and advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent from the following detailed description,the accompanying drawings, and the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a conventional manual operated flushingsystem.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of an automatic flush actuation apparatusaccording to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 3A and 3B illustrate a manual operation of the flushing cycle forthe automatic flush actuation apparatus according to the above preferredembodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 4A and 4B illustrate an automatic sensor operation of the flushingcycle for the automatic flush actuation apparatus according to the abovepreferred embodiment of the to present invention.

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of a sensor-operated poweringdevice of the automatic flush actuation apparatus according to the abovepreferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates an alternative mode of the relief valve of theautomatic flush actuation apparatus according to the above preferredembodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 7A and 7B illustrate the operation of the relief valve of thealternative mode according to the above preferred embodiment of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIG. 2 of the drawings, an automatic flush actuationapparatus 2 for a flushing system 1 according to a preferred embodimentof the present invention is illustrated, wherein the automatic flushactuation apparatus 2 is capable of incorporating with a conventionalmanual operated fluid flow system such as a flushing system to achieveboth manual and automatic operations to start a flushing cycle of theflushing system 1.

The flushing system 1, such as the conventional manual operated flushingsystem, comprises a valve body 11 having a water inlet 111, a wateroutlet 112 and a water chamber 113 that is normally sealed between thewater inlet 111 and the water outlet 112, a valve seat 12, having aflush channel 121, disposed between the water inlet 111 and the wateroutlet 112 to block water flowing from the water inlet 111 to the wateroutlet 112, and a flush lever 13 coupled with the valve body 11.

The valve seat 12 comprises a diaphragm 122, having a bleed hole 100,sealedly disposed in the valve body 11 in a movable manner to define thewater chamber 113 above the diaphragm 122 to communicate between thewater inlet 111 and the water outlet 112. In other words, once the waterwithin the water chamber 113 is released to reduce the water pressuretherein, the diaphragm 122 is forced to bend upwardly so that the wateris capable of passing from the water inlet 111 to the water outlet 112to complete the flushing cycle of the flushing system.

Accordingly, the water is flowed into the water chamber 113 from thewater inlet 111 through the bleed hole 100 on the diaphragm 122 in sucha manner that the water within the water chamber 113 provides apredetermined water pressure against the diaphragm 122 to normally blockthe water flowing to the water outlet 112.

The automatic flush actuation apparatus 2 comprises a valve member 20and a sensor-operated powering assembly 40.

The valve member 20 is adapted for being disposed at the valve seat 12to control the water flowing from the water inlet 111 to the wateroutlet 112. The valve member 20 is capable of being moved by the flushlever 13 between a manual-operated closed position and a manual-operatedopened position, wherein at the manual-operated closed position, thevalve member 20 is arranged for sealedly sitting at the valve seat 12 toblock the water passing to the water outlet 112, and at themanual-operated opened position, the valve member 20 is moved to anopened position for releasing the water pressure within the waterchamber 113 through the flush channel 121 so as to allow the waterpassing from the water inlet 111 to the water outlet 112.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the sensor-operated powering assembly 40comprises a housing 41, which is adapted for mounting on the valve body11, having a power source compartment 411 and a CPU cavity 412, a powersource 42 replaceably received in the power source compartment 411, apower generator 43 electrically connected to the CPU 44, and the CPU 44which is received in the CPU cavity 412 of the housing 41, electricallyconnected with the power source 42 for sensing a presence of a user ofthe flushing system 1, so as to active the power generator 43.

The sensor-operated powering assembly 40 further comprises a reliefvalve 30 provided at the valve member 20 for controlling the waterflowing from the water inlet 111 to the water outlet 112 through thewater chamber 113 and an actuator 45 driven by the power generator 43 tomove the relief valve 30 between an auto-operated closed position and anauto-operated opened position.

Accordingly, at the auto-operated closed position, the relief valve 30is sealedly closed for blocking the water passing to the water outlet112, and at the auto-operated opened position, the relief valve 30 ismoved to an opened position by the actuator 45 for releasing the waterpressure within the water chamber 113 to allow the water passing to thewater outlet 112.

According to the preferred embodiment, the valve member 20 comprises asealing platform 22 arranged for sealedly supporting on the diaphragm122 of the valve seat 12 to normally close the flush channel 121 and avalve controlling shaft 23 downwardly extended from the sealing platform22 for communicating with the flush lever 13 within the flush channel121.

As shown in FIG. 3A, by actuating the flush lever 13, the valvecontrolling shaft 23 is pushed to drive the sealing platform 22 at aposition offset with respect to the diaphragm 122 such that the waterwithin the water chamber 113 is allowed to flow out through the flushchannel 121 and release the water pressure within the water chamber 113because the amount of water flowing out through the flush channel 121 ismuch larger than the amount of water flowing in through the bleed hole100. Thus, when the water pressure within the water chamber 113 reduces,the diaphragm 122 is pushed upwardly for allowing the water passing tothe water outlet 112, so as to start the flushing cycle of the flushingsystem 1 manually as the conventional manual-operated flushing system,as shown in FIG. 3B.

Once the flush lever 13 is returned back to its original position, thesealing platform 22 is forced to sealedly sit on the diaphragm 122 dueto the water pressure so as to sealedly close the flush channel 121.Therefore, the diaphragm 122 is dropped down by refilling the water backinto the water chamber 113 to increase the water pressure therein so asto sealedly close the water outlet 112 to stop the water passingthereto. It is worth to mention that since the sealing platform 22 isnormally sealed on the diaphragm 122, no water is allowed to flowthrough the flush channel 121 to the water outlet 112 until the flushingcycle is started.

The relief valve 30 has a water passage 31 axially extended along thevalve member 20 for communicating the water chamber 113 with the wateroutlet 112, and a valve stopper 32 disposed on the valve member 20 tonormally close the water passage 31 for controlling the water flowingfrom the water inlet 111 to the water outlet 112.

As shown in FIG. 2, the water passage 31 is coaxially extended from thesealing platform 22 to a bottom end of the valve controlling shaft 23for communicating the water chamber 113 with the water outlet 112.

The valve stopper 32, having a ball-shape, sits on the sealing platform22 at an opening of the water passage 31 to normally close the waterpassage 31 for blocking the water pressure releasing from the waterchamber 113. Accordingly, the sealing platform 22 has a circularretaining seat 221 protruding upwardly around the opening of the waterpassage 31 wherein the valve stopper 32 is disposed at the retainingseat 221 of the valve member 20 so as to hold the valve stopper 32 inposition. It is worth to mention that when the valve member 20 is movedbetween the manual-operated closed position and the manual-operatedopened position, the valve stopper 32 remains at the opening of thewater passage 31 to block the water passing the water outlet 112.

As shown in FIG. 5, the housing 41 comprises a supporting frame 413supported above the valve stopper 32 and a valve cap 414, having atransparent window 4141, adapted for detachably mounting on the valvebody 11 to protectively enclose the supporting frame 413, wherein thepower source 42, the power generator 43, and the CPU 44 are supported bythe supporting frame 413 and enclosed by the valve cap 414 while the CPU44 is capable of communicating with outside through the transparentwindow 4141.

According to the preferred embodiment, the power source 42 comprises abattery replaceably disposed in the power source compartment 411 toelectrically connect with the CPU 44. It is worth to mention that thepower source 42 can be used as an AC current to electrically plug intoan electric outlet for supplying electricity to the CPU 44.

The power generator 43, according to the preferred embodiment, is anelectric motor electrically connected to the CPU 44 wherein the powergenerator 43 is actuated via the CPU 44 to drive the actuator 45 torotate. Accordingly, the power generator 43 can be a conventionalsolenoid electrically connected to the CPU 44 to drive the actuator 45so as to move the valve stopper 32 between the auto-operated closedposition and the auto-operated opened position. It is worth to mentionthat the electric motor is more reliable than the solenoid because theelectric motor provides simple mechanical work rather than using themagnetic force, so as to minimize the failure operation of the powergenerator 43 and to reduce the maintenance cost of the presentinvention.

The CPU 44 comprises a control processor 441 supported in the housing 41and a sensor 442 which is electrically connected to the controlprocessor 441 and aligned with the transparent window 4141 of the valvecap 414. Accordingly, the sensor 442 is an infrared sensor arranged todetect the presence of the user by means of infrared signal in such amanner that when the sensor 442 sends an infrared signal through thetransparent window 4141 for detecting the presence of the user of theflushing system, the control processor 441 activates the power generator43 to actuate valve stopper 32 to open the relief valve 30.

In addition, the control processor 441 is a control circuitry to controlthe configuration of the flushing cycle wherein the control processor441 is adapted to control the time of the flushing cycle, the watervolume for each flushing cycle, the detecting range of the sensor 442,and the motion of the electric motor of the power generator 43. Thus, adefault configuration is preset in the control processor 441 such thatthe automatic flush actuation apparatus of the present invention iscapable of returning to its original settings through the controlprocessor 441. It is worth to mention that the control processor 441also controls the power of the power source 42 wherein when there is nosufficient power to actuate the power generator 43, the controlprocessor 441 will control the relief valve 30 to remain in the closedposition. In other words, only the manual operation of the flush lever13 is capable of starting the flushing cycle when the control processor441 stops the actuation of the relief valve 30.

The actuator 45 is rotatably extended from the power generator 43wherein the actuator 45 has a driving end portion 451 downwardly androtatably extended from a bottom side of the supporting frame 413 tocontact with the valve stopper 32. Accordingly, the driving end portion451 of the actuator 45, having a semi-circular cross section, has a flatcontacting surface 4511 and a curved contacting surface 4512, whereinthe driving end portion 451 of the actuator 45 is arranged to be drivento rotate via the power generator 43 to move the valve stopper 32 at theauto-operated closed position that the valve stopper 32 is contactedwith the flat contacting surface 4511 of the actuator 45 to retain thevalve stopper 32 at the opening of the water passage 31 for blocking thewater passing to the water outlet 112 as shown in FIG. 2, and to movethe valve stopper 32 at the auto-operated opened position that the valvestopper 32 is contacted with the curved contacting surface 4512 of theactuator 45 to move the valve stopper 32 to offset the opening of thewater passage 31 for allowing the water passing to the water outlet, asshown in FIG. 4A.

It is worth to mention that when the actuator 45 moves the valve stopper32 away from the opening of the water passage 31, the water within thewater chamber 113 is allowed to flow out through the water passage 31 soas to reduce the water pressure within the water chamber 113, as shownin FIG. 4A. Then, the diaphragm 122 is pushed upwardly for allowing thewater flowing from the water inlet 111 to the water outlet 112, as shownin FIG. 4B. Once the valve stopper 32 is moved back into its originalposition to close the water passage 31, the diaphragm 122 is droppeddown by refilling the water back into the water chamber 113 to increasethe water pressure therein so as to sealedly close the water outlet 112to stop the water passing thereto.

The sensor-operated flushing cycle of the flushing system 1 iscontrolled by the rotation of the actuator 45. Once the driving endportion 451 of the actuator 45 is rotated back to its original position,i.e. valve stopper 32 is contacted with the flat contacting surface 4511of the actuator 45, the valve stopper 32 is forced to sealedly sit onthe valve member 20 by means of water pressure to close the waterpassage 31. Therefore, the diaphragm 122 is dropped down by pressure tosealedly close the water outlet 112 to stop the water passing thereto.

It is worth to mention that the volume of water used in one flushingcycle for the flushing system 1 can be controlled by the power generator43 through the CPU 44 to control the rotational speed of the actuator45. The volume of water used in each flushing cycle can be adjustablycontrolled by controlling the rotational cycle of the actuator 45, i.e.how long the actuator 45 drives the valve stopper 32 to stay in theopened position and the closed position. In other words, the watervolume of each flushing cycle will be increased when the CPU 44 delaysthe rotational cycling time of the actuator 45.

Accordingly, when the valve stopper 32 is moved between theauto-operated closed position and the auto-operated opened position, thevalve member 20 is remained at its manual-operated closed position.Since the manual operation and the sensor operation employ withdifferent water pathways, i.e. the flush channel 121 and the waterpassage 31, the manual and sensor operations do not interrupt with eachother and function individually.

Therefore, to start the flushing cycle of the flushing system, theindividual is able to either manually operate the flush lever 13 to movethe valve member 20 to an offset position so as to release the waterpressure through the flush channel 121 or automatically operate the CPU44 to move the valve stopper 32 to an offset position so that the waterpressure is allowed to be released through the water passage 31. Inother words, even though the sensor-operated powering assembly 40 failsto operate due to the battery, the individual is still able to completethe flushing cycle for the flushing system manually.

In order to securely hold the valve stopper 32 in position, thesupporting frame 413 of the housing 41 further comprises a locating ring415 integrally and downwardly protruded from the bottom side of thesupporting frame 413 to coaxially align with the water passage 31 so asto form as a boundary for the valve stopper 32 to move within thelocating ring 415. In other words, the locating ring 415 limits themovement of the valve stopper 32 to prevent the valve stopper 32 frombecoming dislocated on the valve member 20 and to guide the valvestopper 32 returning back to the opening of the water passage 31 aftercompleting the flushing cycle.

As shown in FIG. 5, the valve cap 414 further comprises an outer casing4142 having a power source opening 4143 aligned with the power sourcecompartment 411 to expose the power source 42 to outside through thepower source opening 4143 and a CPU opening 4144 aligned with the CPUcavity 412 to expose the CPU 44 to outside through the CPU opening 4144,and a power source cover 4145 detachably mounted on the outer casing4142 to cover the power source opening 4143, wherein the transparentwindow 4141 is detachably mounted on the outer casing 4142 to enclosethe CPU 44 within the valve cap 414.

Therefore, an individual is able to replace the power source 42 and toadjust the settings of the CPU 44 by detaching the power source cover4145 and the transparent window 4141 respectively without removing theentire valve cap 414 so as to simplify the replacement operation andadjustment of the present invention. It is worth to mention the valvecap 414, such as the conventional cap, is securely mounted on the valvebody 11 via a locking ring 400 such that the individual must use awrench to unscrew the locking ring 400 in order to detach the valve cap414. It is worth to mention that the locking ring 400 is arranged tosealedly mount the diaphragm 122 of the valve seat 12 on the valve body11 to prevent water leakage thereof. However, it would be inconvenientto replace the power source 42 and to adjust the CPU 44 if the valve cap414 must be detached from the valve body 11 and then sealedly attachedback onto the valve body 11. Thus, the water may leak to the outsidewhen the valve cap 414 is opened, especially if the valve cap 414 is notperfectly sealed onto the valve body 11.

In addition, the valve cap 414 further comprises a cover locker 4146provided on the outer casing 4142 to securely lock up the power sourcecover 4145 and the transparent window 4141 to enclose the power sourceopening 4143 and the CPU opening 4144 respectively. It is worth tomention that the locking and unlocking operation of the cover locker4146 is simply in comparison with the locking and unlocking operation ofthe valve cap 414, so as to provide a quick and easy replacementoperation of the present invention.

In comparison with the conventional manual operated flushing system, theconventional manual operated flushing system can keep most of the majorcomponents, such as the valve body 11, valve seat 12 and the flush lever13, in order to incorporate with the automatic flush actuation apparatus2 of the present invention, so as to minimize the cost of incorporatingthe conventional manual operated flushing system with the automaticflush actuation apparatus 2 of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates an alternative mode of the relief valve 30 whereinthe relief valve 30 further comprises a resilient element 33′ having abiasing end biasing against the valve stopper 32 so as to normallyretain the valve stopper 32 at the auto-operated closed position. Theresilient element 33′, according to the preferred embodiment, is acompression spring disposed within the water passage 31 for applying anurging force against the valve stopper 32 so as to normally pull thevalve stopper 32 to sealedly close the opening of the water passage 31.As shown in FIG. 6, the biasing end of the resilient element 33′ coupledwith the valve stopper 32 and an opposed affixing end coupled with abottom end of the water passage 31 for applying the pulling forceagainst the valve stopper 32.

As shown in FIG. 7A, when the driving end portion 451 of the actuator 45is driven to rotate to move the valve stopper 32 to the offset positionso as to allow the water to flow through the water passage 31, theresilient element 33′ is forced to stretch for applying the urgingpressure against the valve stopper 32. After the driving end portion 451of the actuator 45 moves back to its original position, the resilientelement 33 rebounds to its original form to pull the valve stopper 32back on the retaining seat 221 of the sealing platform 22 for sealingthe water passage 31 so as to block the water to flow therethrough, asshown in FIG. 7B. Therefore, the resilient element 33′ ensures the valvestopper 32 of the relief valve 30 returning back to the auto-operatedclosed position after each flushing operating.

In addition, the automatic flush actuation apparatus 2 of the presentinvention is capable of incorporating with most conventional flushingsystems to provide the sensor operation of the flushing system with orwithout the flush lever 13 for starting the flushing cycle. It is worthto mention that the valve member 20 can be embodied as the valve seat 12when the automatic flush actuation apparatus 2 of the present inventionis incorporated with the conventional sensor-operation flushing system.

One skilled in the art will understand that the embodiment of thepresent invention as shown in the drawings and described above isexemplary only and not intended to be limiting.

It will thus be seen that the objects of the present invention have beenfully and effectively accomplished. The above embodiments are shown anddescribed for the purposes of illustrating the functional and structuralprinciples of the present invention and is subject to change withoutdeparture from such principles. Therefore, this invention includes allmodifications encompassed within the spirit and scope of the followingclaims.

1. Method of controlling volume of water used in each sensor-operatedflushing cycle of a flushing system comprising an automatic flushactuation apparatus, comprising the steps of: (a) detecting a presenceof a user of said flushing system; (b) activating a control processor toadjustably control a time of said flushing cycle and water volume forsaid flushing cycle; (c) starting said flushing cycle of said flushingsystem; and (d) completing said flushing cycle of said flushing systemin responsive to said time of said flushing cycle and said water volumefor said flushing cycle.
 2. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein, inthe step (b), said time of said flushing cycle is adjustably controlledby moving a relief valve of said automatic flush actuation apparatusfrom an auto-operated closed position to an auto-operated openedposition.
 3. The method, as recited in claim 2, wherein, in the step(b), said volume of water used in said flushing cycle is adjustablycontrolled by controlling a time of said relief valve staying at saidauto-operated opened position, wherein said control processor delayssaid time of said relief valve staying at said auto-operated openedposition for increasing said water volume of said flushing cycle.
 4. Themethod, as recited in claim 3, wherein said relief valve comprises avalve stopper being driven by an actuator to move between saidauto-operated closed position and said auto-operated opened position. 5.The method, as recited in claim 4, wherein said control processoradjustably controls a driven speed of said actuator, that is a time saidactuator driving said valve stopper to stay in said auto-operated openedposition, for adjustably controlling said volume of water used in saidflushing cycle for said flushing system, such that said controlprocessor delays said driving time of said actuator for increasing saidwater volume of said flushing cycle.
 6. The method, as recited in claim5, wherein said actuator is driven by a power generator to rotate and todrive said valve stopper to move from said auto-operated closed positionto said auto-operated opened position.
 7. The method, as recited inclaim 6, wherein said volume of water used in said flushing cycle forsaid flushing system is controlled through said control processor tocontrol a rotational speed of said actuator.
 8. The method, as recitedin claim 7, wherein said control processor is selectively adjusted tocontrol said time of said flushing cycle, said water volume for saidflushing cycle, a detecting range of a sensor for detecting presence ofthe user of said flushing system.
 9. The method, as recited in claim 4,wherein said actuator is driven by a power generator to rotate and todrive said valve stopper to move from said auto-operated closed positionto said auto-operated opened position.
 10. The method, as recited inclaim 4, wherein said volume of water used in said flushing cycle forsaid flushing system is controlled through said control processor tocontrol a rotational speed of said actuator.
 11. The method, as recitedin claim 2, wherein said relief valve comprises a valve stopper beingdriven by an actuator to move between said auto-operated closed positionand said auto-operated opened position.
 12. The method, as recited inclaim 11, wherein said control processor adjustably controls a drivenspeed of said actuator, that is a time said actuator driving said valvestopper to stay in said auto-operated opened position, for adjustablycontrolling said volume of water used in said flushing cycle for saidflushing system, such that said control processor delays said drivingtime of said actuator for increasing said water volume of said flushingcycle.
 13. The method, as recited in claim 1, wherein said controlprocessor is selectively adjusted to control said time of said flushingcycle, said water volume for said flushing cycle, a detecting range of asensor for detecting presence of the user of said flushing system.
 14. Amethod of controlling a flushing cycle of a flushing system, wherein themethod comprises the steps of (a) normally retaining a valve stopper ata closed position for controlling water flowing from a water inlet to awater outlet; (b) driving an actuator in a rotational manner to movesaid valve stopper from said closed position to an opened position; and(c) controlling a time of said valve stopper being stayed at said openedposition to control a time of said flushing cycle so as to control avolume of said water for each of said flushing cycles.
 15. The method,as recited in claim 14, wherein said time of said valve stopper isadjustably controlled by a rotational speed of said actuator.
 16. Themethod, as recited in claim 15, wherein said time of said valve stopperis adjustably controlled by a rotational cycle of said actuator.
 17. Themethod, as recited in claim 16 wherein, in the step (b), said actuatoris actuated in responsive to a presence of a user of said flushingsystem.
 18. The method, as recited in claim 17, wherein said actuator isactuated by an electric motor.
 19. The method, as recited in claim 14,wherein said time of said valve stopper is adjustably controlled by arotational cycle of said actuator.
 20. The method, as recited in claim14 wherein, in the step (b), said actuator is actuated in responsive toa presence of a user of said flushing system.
 21. The method, as recitedin claim 14, wherein said actuator is actuated by an electric motor. 22.Method for controlling the flush volume of a flushing system via arelief valve, comprising the steps of: (a) detecting the presence of auser; (b) activating a control processor in responsive to the detectionof the user; (c) adjusting a time of a flushing cycle and water volumefor said flushing cycle in responsive to an activation of said controlprocessor; (d) starting said flushing cycle of said flushing system; and(e) completing said flushing cycle of said flushing system in responsiveto said time of said flushing cycle and said water volume for saidflushing cycle.
 23. The method as recited in claim 22 wherein, in thestep (c), said time of said flushing cycle is adjusted by moving saidrelief valve from an auto-operated closed position to an auto-operatedopened position.
 24. The method, as recited in claim 23, wherein saidrelief valve comprises a valve stopper being driven by an actuator tomove between said auto-operated closed position and said auto-operatedopened position.
 25. The method, as recited in claim 24, wherein saidcontrol processor adjusts a time said actuator driving said valvestopper to stay in said auto-operated opened position for adjusting saidvolume of water used in said flushing cycle for said flushing system.26. The method, as recited in claim 24, wherein said volume of waterused in said flushing cycle for said flushing system is controlledthrough said control processor to adjust a rotational speed of saidactuator.
 27. The method, as recited in claim 22, wherein, in the step(c), said volume of water used in said flushing cycle is adjusted byadjusting a time of said relief valve staying at said auto-operatedopened position.
 28. The method, as recited in claim 27, wherein saidrelief valve comprises a valve stopper being driven by an actuator tomove between an auto-operated closed position and said auto-operatedopened position.
 29. The method, as recited in claim 28, wherein saidcontrol processor adjusts a time said actuator driving said valvestopper to stay in said auto-operated opened position for adjusting saidvolume of water used in said flushing cycle for said flushing system.30. The method, as recited in claim 28, wherein said volume of waterused in said flushing cycle for said flushing system is controlledthrough said control processor to adjust a rotational speed of saidactuator.